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MidnightRider,
Good luck on the poker run,I'll be sitting off to the side watching again this year. And i'll make damn sure i wave at ya :cool: :cool: Steve |
Yeah really, Im going to wave to everyone even though response might be weak from other boaters.
Years ago, when I had my bayliner, I had great response from other boaters waving Times have changed and response is weak anymore, but I will continue to acknowledge others and be respectful and mindful (assuming my freakin boat will do over 10 mph this year GRRRRRR) Hope to see some of you out on the DE river this year and if you dont wave, Ill chase you down and beat you with a 2x4 piece of lumber!!! HA! Jason |
Michigan's warm weather is giving me cabin fever. I'm going to be the idiot smokin' down spring lake in gore tex here in about a week if this keeps up. Bench racin'is getting old.
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I find this topic very interesting. I am in the process of stepping up to a bigger/better boat. I have looked at Bajas' Islander series and the Checkmates. I was surprised by the CM sales person's thoughts on Bajas. Basically, said they are made by the same manufacture that makes Bayliner and you know what kind of crap they are. He did; however, have good things to say about some other types of boats. In my little uneducated mind, I think Baja may get a little lack of respect due to the fact that they are made by Brunswick, who also makes Bayliner. Please don't take this as being a bash on Bajas, just a thought. I like the Bajas personally, but am a little hesitant when I ask some independent, third party people their thoughts on Bajas and they are not good. Most negative comments I hear are about how they make their molds. I am also very aware that people fear the unknown. In addition, when I spoke to a Baja salesman, I asked him the difference between the 496 and the 496 HO. He said the 496 HO was a high output engine. I said, OK, what makes it a high output engine. He said it puts out more HP. I said, OK, how does it put out more HP? He said, "They soup it up". My thought was, "NO SH@#." Not a real qualified salesperson is you ask me.
Please comment on my experience with Baja. Thank You |
Midnight Rider,
Do you have a Baja with a built motor in it and Midnight Rider written in Red down the side? If so, you boat sounds bad ass :D See ya in Hanky this summer :D |
Eric1969,
Brunswick makes all kinds of boats. Sure bayliner is one of them but so is Sea Ray. Are they the same quality as a bayliner too? How about Mercury Marine? They are owned by Brunswick too yet no other manufactorers hesitate to slap a Merc to the transom of their boats. Sounds like you have been fed a line of bull. As far as a Baja salesman that doesn't know his head from a hole in the ground, I'm not suprised. Find a good dealer to talk to about boats. Some of these guys couldn't sell a car let alone a boat. At least you got someone to talk with you. The last time I went to a checkmate dealer, I couldn't get someone to even talk to me :mad: Oh well, their loss cause I'm not going to spend my money there. If you want to talk with someone at Baja about their boats, hit their website and shoot them an email. You will get a qualified person responding to you. I've talked to my area rep many times about different questions because I no longer have a local dealer. They have been very helpful! Just my .02 |
Red Stripe,
I like the Sea Rays, but the thought of the Bayliner may be one reason why Bajas are frowned upon. Just a thought. I have had some email conversations with the Baja Rep from their web site which was great. Then I went to the Atlanta Boat Show and met my "Baja Expert". It was actually really funny, I never would of thought that was the answer I would of gotten. I laughed when he gave me that answer and then just walked away. :D :D My fear is that I make a purchase and it turns out to be the wrong one. How do you like your sport boat? My guess is the Islanders are made from the same concept? I wonder how they differ from SeaRays? Thanks for the thoughts. |
Eric,
Did that CM salesman tell you what junk Mercruiser engines are since they are also made by Brunswick? BTW - I've been to the CM factory and seen them being built. I'll keep my mouth shut to avoid starting something. |
A couple of things, First for Red, That is my Baja, straight dry pipes and about 565hp, sounds like a dragster, the folks at Grand Ilse love when I creep back into the marina at about 3am. It's for sale right now, I bought a 42 Fountain. Now to the salesman, If you are any kind of saleman, never attack someone else's product, it hurts your own credibility. And he must not be to intelligent, because as was stated, brunswick owns Merc, Sea Ray, Baja, and Bayliner, and not Bayliner when they were the blue and white peaces of ****. If have has ever been on a newer 90's BL you would realize it is almost a Sea Ray quality boat, (we still called my buddies a ****liner, LOL) But it was a nice boat.
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29 Outlaw,
No he did not critize Mercruiser, he was a little critical on how the molds and fiberglassing was done on the Bajas vs CM. Please believe me, I take everything with a grain of salt. I would of been more surprised if he said they were great boats. I like the looks and options Bajas provide, just when the salesman is a mooron and doesn't represent his company well, it sets a little alarm off in my head. I enjoy comparing boats and I always learn alot talking with other boaters. I am by no means an expert, I just want a solid boat that is reliable, fast and that I can use with my water toys. Thanks |
Baja's are not "MADE" by brunswick, they are the parent company that bought out the original owners. I believe they were bought out in 96 or so by brunswick. Bayliner, searay, Baja, Maxum, and the rest have nothing to do with each other except they are owned by the same bank basically. They are all still run by seperate entities. All the boats arent built in the same place by the same standards.
Let's just say Brunswick decides to buy out Cigarette or Skater or Outerlimits etc etc etc Does that mean they arent still kick ass boats...NO! Look at scarab, SWEET boat! I don't really care for much else of the Wellcraft line though but that doesn't make Scarab a crappy boat. And speaking of Bayliner, they really arent that bad of boats, the reason they got such a bad rep was because they used to let the hulls sit outside for to long and they would weaken from what I was told. When is the last time you actually heard of a Bayliner's hull cracking in half? That is what happend a LOOOONG time ago to a bunch of bad hulls and they never had the same reputaion again. `Theres a couple of those 60+ foot Bayliner yaughts in the harbor here that I wouldnt mind cruising! Baja is a sweet riding and running boat. I've said it a million times before, I've run my boat in the ocean in BIG swells for the last 4-5 years. No hull stress cracks anywhere!! That boat is out of the water more than its in the water when I'm running it out there. The only strees cracks on the whole boat is on the corners of the fiberglass fairing from the fairing flexing. (the fairing is not part of the deck lid). I would put my boat up against ANY boat in it's size class. Half the other boats never run in the kinds of conditions I've run my boat in! If you are going to base your opinions on what everyone else thinks that have never owned the type of boat you are going to buy, then you are probably out of luck. And in regards to bad salesmen, that has nothing to do with how the boat is constructed or how good of a boat it is. It just means the guys heads up his ass and doesn't know what the hell he's talking about. Prob. needed the job to pay bills. Read the brochure and ran with it. Go to a different dealer, complain to the manager of that dealer, or to Baja directly. But don't base your opinion of a boat company because the salemen was an idiot. Again, good luck in buying a new boat. Whatever you buy you WILL be happy with. Theres not to many crappy offshore boat builers these days. Tank |
First I had an 85 bayliner and for 9 grand boat motor trailer deal (20 ft) it was not bad at all
No it was not my wildest choice, at that time I wanted a 38 scarab but hey minor difference in dollars plus it was my fathers money so his decision anyway, that boat taught me alot about boating and tides, charting and all seamanship stuff. Now this is MY boat bought with MY money and I am responsible for it. No it was not my first choice but and I stress BUT, I am very happy with how much it was, and the condition it was in was reflective of the price. if I parted it out, I could get more for it than I paid let alone sell it as a whole. No my boat is not the fastest or wildest paint job but it is a great looking boat with the amenities that I wanted and required. for 17 g's that I paid, I probably am way ahead of most of you wether your in a 100 thou boat or a 10 thou boat I am happy with my decision, I am looking forward to my experiences with this particular baja and get all goose bumps when thinking about working and playing on it. I think that alot of these boat builders are way way way overpriced and Baja is allowing alot of us to enter into this hobby at a more modest price with same engines that the "big guys" use Yeah you can get a 33 outlaw with t-500efi or twin chief 1100's if your crazy enough the addition of the custom shop at Baja is just another way of them really doing what the customer wants in my opinion that skittles scheme is really impressive and tops out with the outerlimits, sonic and others schemes as well in comparison. I think baja builds a boat for the more realistic boater that has a budget and works for their money on a non 6 figure income. Hell I dont make 6 figures and I dont have a 6 figure boat either. am I embarassed to take my boat out and smash some waves? NO Have I already met and talked to alot of other boaters on here that share my feelings YES So if some snot that owns some 900 thousand dollar rig does not wave to me as he is passing me , so be it, dont care I worked really really hard for along time for this dream to come true, no snot nosed Mommy gimme some money I want a custom built boat is going to rob me of my pleasure of taking my baja out and running it and feeling on top of the world. I did not expect this post to grow to this size or have the details of the feedback that I got. Im glad people are posting and maybe one that owns a expensive rig can read this and say to him/herself, huh maybe it is not all the money you spend on this -- maybe it is the fact that others like the water and to go fast and make noise and have fun and weekend out there and relax, and not spend a kabillion dollars. Im happy, how about you? Jason |
If I were in the market today for those two boats, I would be torn. I believe Checkmate is a much more solid boat, an a little better ride. Two of my friends had the checkmates, a 95 pursader, and a 98 convincer, they are quality, and that convincer is fast(its like 67 with a 330hp). But in the 29, the outlaw is simply a better looking boat, both in the cockpit and down the rails. Just leave off that tacky splatter paint. My old Baja is not ever worth using as a reference point.LOL, it was and is a good boat, we were just together to long.
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thistank-
Sorry, I didn't mean they were made by Brunswick. My concern would be reliability. I am going to speak with a different sales rep with Baja. Can't be any worse than the last guy :D :D :D I agree with Jay. I am fortunate enough to make 6 figures and I still can't afford a big boat. I have a 17 foot FourWinns, crap my "johnson" is bigger than my boat. :D :D :D :D My personal decision is between a CM and a Baja. I was just responding to the topic about why Baja takes a little bit of a bad wrap. Please take my comments from an outside source who is by no means an expert but is part of the general boating public. |
CM's are good boats but I can't get by the dated styling. When I went to visit the factory the first area I saw was their corporate office space. I felt like I was walking onto the set of the 70's show - complete with green, mono chrome, vt100 monitors on the desks. Lots of velour too. It's easy to see why the old styling carries over to the boats.
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Just as a side note to add some craziness to this
I love my baja's freeboard My boat does NOT look like it is sinking like the fountains, sonics and the rest I can take a 2 foot wave on the side and still be dry a 35 fountain would be screwed!!!! Jay |
Originally posted by 29 OUTLAW: <STRONG>CM's are good boats but I can't get by the dated styling. When I went to visit the factory the first area I saw was their corporate office space. I felt like I was walking onto the set of the 70's show - complete with green, mono chrome, vt100 monitors on the desks. Lots of velour too. It's easy to see why the old styling carries over to the boats.</STRONG> |
I'm with you Jay!! Not to bragg but I make enuff to buy what ever kinda boat I want, But I keep my little old (paid for) Baja. Have I ever been snubbed beause I am in a Baja? Well I may have but I don't pay a h#ll of a lot of attention to em :D Do I some times want a faster boat? Sure I do when some smart@ss blows by me like I am stopped I want something faster. But overall I really like my Baja and if I had it to do over again I would buy the same boat I have now. Just my $.02 for what it is worth :rolleyes:
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Eric, I wasn't offended by anything you've said bro. I was just commenting on how every one seems to think just because Brunswick bought out a bunch of boat companies that now they are all the same boat. It just isn't that way. And like I said before Brunswick is just like a big bank for these companies, thats all. Brunswick is just a big money machine. They take their money and put it into a business to make more money. I just think it's a huge misconseption to say all the boat companies under Brunswick are built by the same company, it's not that black and white.
Tank |
"250 Sport", best mini-offshore around for the money. I put 100+ hours on a summer for four years, and even though I now own the big fountain, I still think that boat is sweet. It was great in the 4-6 footers, and in lite chop the thing just unstuck and flew. And that boat does not have a crack on it, anyone who ever rode with me knows I had no problem runnin wide open on the big water. There was few times I thought we were crashin, once it was like 10-12 footers, just goin up and down the waves, I punched it off the top of one, and it stabbed the next wave, the whole boat dove under, that actually scared me. The people that were out that october day were only the big bad baja, my buddy in his pursader, and the coast gaurd. Those boats hold up. And as far as the fountains low ridin, thats just so they look like they are runnin 100+ at idle.
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ANYONE WHO BASHES SOMEONE ELSE RIDE BECAUSE ITS NOT UP TO THEIR STANDARD, IS NOT SOMEONE YOU WANT TO HANG AROUND ANYWAYS. LIFE'S TOO SHORT, ENJOY THIS GREAT SPORT, WHO GIVES A CRAP IF YOU DRIVE A BAJA OR A ACTIVE THUNDER LIKE ME, IM JUST GLAD TO BE ON THE WATER. DIFFERENT STROKES FOR DIFFERENT FOLKS :D
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Eric, the differences in construction that you speak of is where the difference in quality lies between some brands of boats. Since you asked, I'll see if I can help you out on fiberglass construction techniques.
Remember, with a mold, boats are built from the outside in. The gel coat is sprayed into the mold first before any glass is ever laid. Then, there are two main types of construction. 1) Chopper Gun - most inexpensive boats (read: B-liner - no offense anyone) are/were constructed using this technique. The fiberglass mat (mat is the fiberglass cloth that resembles wafer board - multi-directional strands that easily pull apart) and resin/hardener mix are both fed into a form of spray gun. The gun actually chops the mat into fine pieces and blends it with the resin as it is sprayed into the mold (hence the name - chopper gun). Fine for a river runner but not how you would want your offshore rig to be constructed. The construction is much like that of a uni-body car. As long as everything is in one piece, it's fine. However, one "dent" and it could compromise the strength of the entire unit. The cost savings are in the manhours required to lay up a boat and in the cheaper fiberglass mat. You could have several molds with one guy going from mold to mold spraying on the mix of mat/resin. As the first one is ready for another application of mat he starts back at the beginning. 2) Hand Laid - Each layer of fiberglass cloth is, as the title says, hand laid. Continuous rolls of woven fiberglass cloth are laid in the mold from bow to stern in one piece. Resin is applied and either squeegeed or rolled until all cloth is soaked with resin and laying flat. No voids or air pockets. Incredibly strong since the cloth is made of woven strands and is continuous for the length of the boat. Cloth comes in different weights and there are also different types of resin. Some manufacturers offer lay up with a resin known as AME 5000. This is an incredibly strong, more expensive, resin that also happens to be lighter than typical resins. Want to really get crazy? Lay one up in carbon fiber. We once had a STV tunnel custom built for drag racing. 20 feet long and 425lbs out of the mold. Strong as steel. Race weight with a 200lb driver, Merc 2.5, 5 gals fuel etc was about 1075. There are some other differences worth mentioning. Is the hull and deck joint screwed together or bonded with glass AND screwed/bolted? Makes a difference. How about motor mounts? Lag bolted into the stringers or through bolted with 1/2' stainless hardware and backing plates on the other side? Many things factor into the price of the toys we play with. Take your time and look at all the details. Nothing is free. However, when you get into the boats of which we usually speak on OSO, most of the things I mentioned should be standard fare. You should'nt find any disappointments when looking at the Bajas. I can't speak for CM. Don't have any down here. Good luck and hope this wasn't too long. |
Originally posted by Croozin2: <STRONG>Eric, the differences in construction that you speak of is where the difference in quality lies between some brands of boats. Since you asked, I'll see if I can help you out on fiberglass construction techniques. Remember, with a mold, boats are built from the outside in. The gel coat is sprayed into the mold first before any glass is ever laid. Then, there are two main types of construction. 1) Chopper Gun - most inexpensive boats (read: B-liner - no offense anyone) are/were constructed using this technique. The fiberglass mat (mat is the fiberglass cloth that resembles wafer board - multi-directional strands that easily pull apart) and resin/hardener mix are both fed into a form of spray gun. The gun actually chops the mat into fine pieces and blends it with the resin as it is sprayed into the mold (hence the name - chopper gun). Fine for a river runner but not how you would want your offshore rig to be constructed. The construction is much like that of a uni-body car. As long as everything is in one piece, it's fine. However, one "dent" and it could compromise the strength of the entire unit. The cost savings are in the manhours required to lay up a boat and in the cheaper fiberglass mat. You could have several molds with one guy going from mold to mold spraying on the mix of mat/resin. As the first one is ready for another application of mat he starts back at the beginning. 2) Hand Laid - Each layer of fiberglass cloth is, as the title says, hand laid. Continuous rolls of woven fiberglass cloth are laid in the mold from bow to stern in one piece. Resin is applied and either squeegeed or rolled until all cloth is soaked with resin and laying flat. No voids or air pockets. Incredibly strong since the cloth is made of woven strands and is continuous for the length of the boat. Cloth comes in different weights and there are also different types of resin. Some manufacturers offer lay up with a resin known as AME 5000. This is an incredibly strong, more expensive, resin that also happens to be lighter than typical resins. Want to really get crazy? Lay one up in carbon fiber. We once had a STV tunnel custom built for drag racing. 20 feet long and 425lbs out of the mold. Strong as steel. Race weight with a 200lb driver, Merc 2.5, 5 gals fuel etc was about 1075. There are some other differences worth mentioning. Is the hull and deck joint screwed together or bonded with glass AND screwed/bolted? Makes a difference. How about motor mounts? Lag bolted into the stringers or through bolted with 1/2' stainless hardware and backing plates on the other side? Many things factor into the price of the toys we play with. Take your time and look at all the details. Nothing is free. However, when you get into the boats of which we usually speak on OSO, most of the things I mentioned should be standard fare. You should'nt find any disappointments when looking at the Bajas. I can't speak for CM. Don't have any down here. Good luck and hope this wasn't too long.</STRONG> |
Eric, the only way you learn is to ask questions(which you have been doing) and do some of it yourself. Some projects obviously require a trained technician but the more you tackle yourself, the more familiar you will become with it. I, out of necessity, have always performed much of my own repair work. Also learned much about the smaller boats (tunnel boats and hydros) from my Dad. Was big in the hydros back in the 50's and 60's. Much of the info transfered to larger boats, though. Just jump in with both feet!
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ERIC, IF THIS SALESMAN WAS SELLING A YUGO, THEY WOULD BE THE BEST THING ON THE MARKET. HE IS PUSHING A PRODUCT IN AN INDUSTRY HE OBVIOUSLY KNOWS LITTLE ABOUT. COMPARE FOR YOURSELF THE QUALITY BETWEEN THE TWO MANUFACTURERS AND I THINK YOU WILL SEE THAT BAJA BUILDS A DAMN FINE BOAT, NOT JUST COMPARED TO CM, BUT TO ANY MANUFACTURER. AFTER VISUAL COMPARISON, BE SURE TO TEST DRIVE BOTH BOATS. CM BUILDS A SLEEK GOOD LOOKING BOAT, BUT THEY DO NOT HANDLE ROUGH WATER LIKE A COMPARABLE BAJA, I HAVE SEEN THIS FIRST HAND.
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Eric1969, hey man i see your from Suwanee GA. what the hell is there to do down there? I am coming down the week of feb. the 25th. to do some work. Just want to know what to look out for. Is there any water large enough for my 32 i'm looking for some warmer weather to dial it in? :D :eek:
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Originally posted by diligaf Those 40ft outerlimits and skaters and pantera's and black thunder's and Cigs are FEW AND FAR BETWEEN where I am from. My Baja gets more WOW's wherever I go. When I volunteered as a patrol boat and took it down to the NYC boat race, one of the guys from KRYPTONITE racing was checking it out and asking me all kinds of questions. Overall, you get a lot of boat for the money with a Baja.. Maybe when you get rid of that PINK stripe down the side people will stop laughing .... :eek: :eek: ;) ;) Just kidding, have fun and enjoy it... not everyone can afford a 300,000 dollar go-fast. Us Pantera owners are real nice people..unlike those Fountain people and their gold chains :D :D (just joking, I used to have a beaker!) |
gold chains |
Re: question, do we get looked down on since we own baja's???
A further comment on thisistank comments around gelcoat.
I been looking at the Baja's for a number of years, the sports and outlaws. Just bought a 240 sport, 88. There is virtually no gelcoat cracking on this boat. I've looked at lots of other performance boats, Donzi's, CM's, Scorpion etc. and lots have GC cracking. I looked at 4 Baja's and none had cracking on the hull. One had minor cracking on the upper right transom but looked like it had been bumped. This 88 is extremely solid. I haven't seen the spec's on the 05's but all the 90's models seem to be the same or close weight so the construction must be similar. There are lots of better quality boats out there but overall, the sleek lines, solid stable dry ride and performance of the Baja's make's them a great boat and a solid purchase. You might not see Donald Trump in one but hey, his hair might blow off! |
Re: question, do we get looked down on since we own baja's???
I think we do get looked down upon. That is why I try to surround myself with Cobalt owners. At least I can outrun them.
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Re: question, do we get looked down on since we own baja's???
Damn..... Now here's a thread dug up from the past :eek: :D
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Re: question, do we get looked down on since we own baja's???
90% of the time, I get VERY favorable reactions to my 25 Outlaw, especially from bored females on other boats (of course, it's when I'm with my woman not when it's a guys day out). I wave to everybody regardless of what boat there in, life's too short to be conceited or arrogant. The only snobby reactions I've ever had were at the AC performance in water boat show (Hustler, Eliminator, etc). I would walk up to a group of guys all dressed in the same shirts/jackets and try to talk to them, they would make it quite clear that they weren't interested in my presence. Whether it was because they were dressed up like little girls going to Sunday mass or because they are fiercely insecure, I don't know but I will tell you this FU*K 'EM !! I'll always be friendly when I first meet someone, once. I don't have an intense need to be "accepted" by a bunch of factory guys in Hustler jackets...I'd always rather party with you guys. I'd rather have a house and a Baja than a $300K boat. I started in a $100 1985 Welcraft 165 Stinger w/ a Johnson 90 O/B (30mph @ WOT) so I come from humble beginnings...
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Re: question, do we get looked down on since we own baja's???
What does, and always will, piss me off is when other Baja owners act like snobs. I've been snubbed on more than one occasion by fellow Baja owners, it's less than 1% of the time but it still makes me want to jump in their ride and 'educate' them. If you're in the Avalon, NJ area and a guy in a red/white/blue 25 Outlaw with a fiberglass swim platform doesn't wave back...don't be surprised. Maybe he's pissed that he didn't get the aluminum swim platform or because he only has the single-ram trim tabs...I don't know but I waved to him twice (he gets the benefit of the doubt, being a Baja owner and all) and he snubbed me both times !! A guy in a brand new 30 Outlaw also looked right at me and didn't wave back !! What an as*hole !! Again, it's only been three times since I've been a Baja owner but those occasions stick out more in my mind.
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Re: question, do we get looked down on since we own baja's???
DAAAAAM this is a blast from the past!!
I wrote that reply almost four years ago and now own a Top Gun and I'll tell you what....I still give props to Baja and always will. Great boat!! It's funny, when ever I see a Baja running around I tap my wife and yell, "Baja pride!!"....Yea, I'm kind've a dork...Whatever :drink: :drink: :drink: |
Re: question, do we get looked down on since we own baja's???
I read this whole thing and had to reply.... I own 2 Bajas..1993 38 Special and 2003 442. While I know these are some of the largest Bajas built, I have a tremendous amount of seat time in Bajas. My first Baja was a 1973 15ft. ski boat with 70 + plus HP outboard. Great Boat! Wish I had it today to play around with and that was well over 25 years ago. I have owned many boats since that time and met many people through the years from boating. The boating community as a whole is extremely friendly and in most cases acknowledges the other in passing. I have heard the bashing on this web site and others and felt I needed to speak out to my other Baja brethren. I have the ability to purchase some of the other boats on the market, as you can see by what I own, and I believe that Baja is the best overall package for me. I spent numerous hours researching other boats (with intentions of defecting) including sea trials and physically going to look at many used boats before deciding what to purchase. The only group that I have seen that are not Baja friendly are just not friendly at all. They just think they are better than everyone else. Alot of people take jabs a Baja's because they have to justify their tremendous investment. If you go to the Poker Runs you will see that the boats that seem to break the most are also the most expensive. Yes you can buy another manufacturers' boat that will go faster with the same power and there are also boats that go slower. I purchased my third Baja because it provided me with the best boat to meet my needs. By the way, both my 38 and 442 have been to the Bahamas and back with not so much as adding a quart of oil. In July, I ran a poker run that was so rough that the only 4 boats (out of 35+) to complete the run in the Gulf were a 47 Fountain, 43 Nortech, 28 Pantera (I think) and my 442. I agree it was rough, but the three of us just kept going. The Pantera was not too far behind. I have a whole new respect for Pantera. The bottom line is there are a number of boat manufacturers out there and there is an ass for every seat. There are only so many $500,000+ asses though. I will eventually want a larger boat (like yesterday) and hope that Baja enters that market in the future. I will be watching. I am damn proud to be a Baja owner and feel very fortunate to be part of such a loyal group!
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Re: question, do we get looked down on since we own baja's???
I have never felt looked down upon but in my area Bajas are really the only performance boat around. Few Foutains but who cares. I have to share this story though. Memorial day 2004 LOTO rough as hell I was leaving a marina with my friend who was in a procharged 29 outlaw, Three Cigs came hauling up the lake all 36 + in length they were cutting through the water without spilling a drop of thier drinks. We had joked all weekend that the procharged 29 was a time bomb waiting to go off and his weekend would be over. As we idled out I told him to go get them. He jumped on it and I followed way behind. (I was in my old 29 with 496's) He had 6 people in his boat he caught them and started to pull the Cigs with his stern out of the water a lot of the time. He said the look on there faces was priceless. If they were all the way into thier throttles I don't know but I would think a little respect had to be earned.
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Re: question, do we get looked down on since we own baja's???
I think the better question is this...
"Do you really give a $hit what a low life non-boater ***gett that has to spend BIG $$$ to show the world he is someone, and feels the need to belittle those that spend less really thinks?" I consider myself to be a boater. We use our boat, we overnight on it, we take long extended coastal trips, we have done 21 Poker Runs in the last three years. A true boater LOVES and ENJOYS boating. I have ran side by side to boat that cost three times what mine did and when we all arrive at the same destination we feel just as satisfied about the trip and have just as much fun! We have MANY friends that own Baja's, Cigarette's, Fountains, Formula's, Velocity's, NotTechs and others that are also boaters. These people NEVER look down on another boater. Then you have those that usually "ONLY" go to poker runs, or big events for the sole purpose to "BE SEEN", and they are very concerned about what they are seen in, how much they paid for it and making sure you know it! I have seen enough of them to just walk right by and not give a $hit. I have seen several of them that no longer even have a boat. They were living a big lifestyle they really could not afford and are gone! A lot of my friends now with other brands use to own, or like me started out with Baja's. It is a perception that you should move up, that Baja is enty level. In most cases they spent a lot of additional money and only gained MPH, and in many cases lost other things that Baja has to offer in the trade. In my opinion most manufacturers owe Baja a thank you for getting so many people into this sport and getting them hooked. Ask people what their first performance boat was and 6 out of 10 will say Baja! Just my opinion. |
Re: question, do we get looked down on since we own baja's???
Dock,
Well put... I started with an 87 240 sport with an 454 and an alfa drive.........that lasted 3 weeks.....booom to the drive. I have been boating all my life. I had my first boat wen i was 6 12 ft with a 6hp Evinrude.....top speed of 10 mph. Now I have a 2001 302 that I own with my brothers and due to some disagreements we are selling it. I have had people drool over my boat and it is bone stock from the factory.....I have also had people look at like it was a huge hunk of sh!t. I am the same as most have said. I have looked at many many other boats riddin on tons of them and I came to the conclusion that baja has the best bang for your buck. Its well built, good warranty, relatively fast, safe, and it actually has room in the cocpit...... We could have bought many other boats including a cig and fountain but I couldn't see spending 50-100% more for the same class of boat.... I loved seeing the faces on the guys 2 years ago during a poker run with 50+ boats. We had 5-7ft seas and I was the fourth boat to the lunch stop 50 miles from the starting port. A 42 fountain, 40 outlaw, and an 37 outerlimits were the only boats that beat my 68 mph 302........ Nuf said......Baja can hang with any of them. PERIOD. |
Re: question, do we get looked down on since we own baja's???
being a baja owner i had to join in. i boat on the hudson and there are alot of speed boats out every weekend. i have meet some of this guys.(most from this board) and these guys have some sick rides. ive seen tantrums 30 amt cat and ive seen stez cig. all i got from them is compliaments on my boat. they dont care what i have they just understand that we all love to do the same thing. but yes i have been looked down on by some and it does bother me but all i do is i give you the one finger salute instead of a wave. im proud of my boat and i do want to buy a top gun one daybut until that day i will drive my 25 outlaw with pride.
BTW i am also a brunswick pool table dealer so i do show a little favortizim. |
Re: question, do we get looked down on since we own baja's???
What Doc said!!!! :D
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